Smoke-Free Multi-Unit Housing: Blazing Trails - Rapidly! Tobacco Prevention

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Smoke-Free Multi-Unit Housing Blazing Trails -
Rapidly! Tobacco Prevention Control Program
Blazing Trails Conference Salt Lake City, Utah
January 12, 2010
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Presenter

• Jim Bergman, J.D.
• Smoke-Free Environments Law Project
• The Center for Social Gerontology, Inc.
• Ann Arbor, Michigan
• 734 665-1126
• jbergman_at_tcsg
• www.mismokefreeapartment.org
• www.tcsg.org/sfelp/home.htm

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Virtually no smoke-free apartments or condos
could be found in Utah the U.S. in
private or public housing Most
apartment/condo owners thought it was
illegal to have a smoke-free policy Many
newspapers thought it was illegal to allow
ads saying no smoking or SF Most tenants
didnt realize they had some rights to
smoke-free housing
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Hundreds of thousands of units of
market-rate housing are smoke-free all across the
U.S. Utah Includes large, multi-state
companies, moderate sized companies, small
companies, and single-family home rentals.
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Tens of thousands of units of affordable housing
are smoke-free all across U.S. Includes
apartment buildings owned by for- profit and
non-profit entities, as well as local governments
and tribes.
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Dec. 31, 2009 over 138 housing authorities in 19
states, including 2 in Utah. Dec. 31, 2004
about 15 housing authorities in 7 states had
smoke-free policies for some or all their
buildings. None in Utah. An increase of over
820 in 60 months. Over 2 new housing authorities
per month
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Are you or a loved one ready to make the move to
convenient, low-maintenance housing? Comfortable
apartments, duplexes, and quadraplexes are
perfect for seniors, near elderly and those
dealing with disabilities. Our facilities offer
a number of favorable features and amenities,
including 24 hour emergency maintenance
Secure units with extra safety precautions
Conveniently located near grocery stories,
medical offices, area churches
Spacious Parking Carpeted Units with
Curtain Rods provided Kitchen stove and
refrigerator provided Barrier Free Units
Laundry Facilities or Laundry Hook-up
Emergency Call System in Each Unit
Hard-wired smoke detectors provided Cable
T.V. at a Reduced Rate Lovely Community
Room with Kitchen Facilities Patio
Container Gardening space Smoke-free
buildings for senior disabled housing
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Its legal HUD strongly encourages it
Cost savings are significant Fire risk and
damage reduced Health risks of secondhand
smoke Secondhand smoke cannot be controlled
Tenants want smoke-free apartments Legal
liability issues due to SHS intrusions
Competition from other SF housing
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• Smoke-free policies are legal in market-rate and
  affordable housing, including HUD-subsidized.
  Utah law explicitly says its legal. Secondhand
  Smoke Amendments enacted in 1997.
• Neither federal nor state law prohibits an owner
  from making their apartment building totally
  smoke-free.

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• Many HUD letters state that public subsidized
  housing operators are free under federal state
  laws to make their buildings totally smoke-free,
  so long as they adhere to state law notice and
  other requirements.
• Grandfathering only required for as long as the
  state law requires.

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• As the HUD letters have stated
• The right to smoke or not to smoke is not a
  right that is protected under the Civil Rights
  Act of 1964 because smokers are not a protected
  class under federal law.

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• Smoking damages residential property
• Causes cigarette burn damage and stench to
  carpets, counters, etc
• Leaves smoke residue on walls and curtains
• Poses fire hazard

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Smoking residue increases cost of rehabilitating
apartment when smoker moves out. Owners estimate
it costs 500 to 8,000 more to rehab an
apartment in which a smoker lived than a
non-smoker.
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• Nationally
• Smoking was the cause of just 9 of apartment
  fires, but
• Smoking was the cause of 40 of deaths from
  apartment fires, and  
• Smoking was the cause of 16 of injuries from
  apartment fires
• NFIRS, 2002

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• Fire damage can cause apartment units to go
  off-line for months
• Water and smoke damage to adjoining units can
  take them off-line, as well
• Former residents have to find alternative housing
  and probably wont return

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Secondhand smoke spreads throughout multi-unit
dwellings Air quality studies in apartment
buildings show that anywhere from 5 to 60 of
the air in apartment units comes from other units
in the building.
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Secondhand smoke cannot be controlled by
ventilation or air cleaning On June 30, 2005,
the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating
Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) issued their
latest position document on secondhand smoke.
It states At present, the only means of
effectively eliminating health risk associated
with indoor exposure is to ban smoking
activity. www.ashrae.org
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• It is a Toxic Air Contaminant, putting secondhand
  smoke in the same category as the most toxic
  automotive and industrial air pollutants.

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• There is no risk-free level of exposure to
  secondhand smoke. Breathing even a little
  secondhand smoke can be harmful.
• The only way to fully protect yourself and your
  loved ones from the dangers of secondhand smoke
  is through 100 smoke-free environments.

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• Healthy Androscoggin in Auburn, Maine surveyed
  850 tenants 76 would choose to live in a
  smoke-free apartment complex
• Twin Cites (MN) random sample survey -- 55 of
  renters said they had moved or would move from an
  apartment because of secondhand smoke seepage
• ALA-California in 2006 surveyed apt owners 67
  favored a SF apt law when they learned it would
  protect people from SHS and could reduce their
  fire insurance premiums. In 2004 survey, 69 of
  renters favored requiring all apt buildings to
  have SF sections.
• For opinion surveys www.tcsg.org/sfelp/public.htm
  

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By 2008, 93 of Utah households were SF -- Utah
data from Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance
System, 1989-2008 In 2003, 89 of Utah
households were SF In 1998, 81 of Utah
households were SF In 1992, 70 of Utah
households were SF -- Morbidity Mortality
Weekly Report May 25, 2007
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Smoke-free homes are the norm in the Utah, not
the exception. But, currently, most apartment
condo buildings, including affordable housing,
lack SF policies. 9.6 of Utahs rental
households are exposed to SHS, compared to 3.9
of owner-occupied homes. Residents want housing
that meets their desire to have a smoke-free home.
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Over 91 of Utah adults dont smoke Over 96 of
Utahns 65 dont smoke Non-smoking rates among
minority populations 86 of Hispanics 90 of
other non-white Utahns Many smokers dont want
smoke in their home Most apartment buildings
allow smoking -- the marketplace is way behind
demand
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The market for smoke-free housing is huge,
regardless of income level About 80 of Utahns
with incomes under 15,000 dont smoke About
87 of Utahns with incomes between 15,000
50,000 dont smoke Over 93 of Utahns with
incomes over 50,000 dont smoke -- 2008 Utah
BRFSS prevalence data
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• Residents negatively impacted by
• secondhand smoke actually have the right
• to seek legal action against smokers and/or
• owners who do not make adequate
• provisions to protect them from SHS.
• Utah Secondhand Smoke Amendments establish SHS
  is a nuisance and allow victim to seek injunctive
  relief and/or damages. Utah Code 78B-6-1101

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• Residents negatively impacted by
• secondhand smoke actually have the right
• to seek legal action against owners who do
• not make adequate provisions to protect
• them from second hand smoke.
• Fair Housing Act complaints can be filed
  seeking a reasonable accommodation.
• Possible violation of warranty of habitability
  or peaceful enjoyment.

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Multi-unit housing associations their
publications are focusing on the benefits of
smoke-free policies NAA and NMHC policy memos,
Feb., 2008 UNITS magazine, Dec., 2007
Assisted Housing Management Insider, March,
2007 MultiFamily Executive, Nov., 2006
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Online apartment listing companies are adding
smoke-free as an amenity item on their
listings, e.g., RentLinx Smoke-free is
becoming more common as an amenity item in
marketing by apartment owners/managers
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• Thousands of market-rate and affordable housing
  providers are adopting smoke-free policies,
  including HUD-subsidized, tax credit- subsidized,
  etc.
• The marketplace is changing rapidly, and
  smoke-free is the hot new amenity.

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Phone [phone] Email oldfarm96_at_gmail.com
Address 777 E. 1000 N. Logan, Utah 84321
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Location Directions 1048 East Liberty Bend
Lane (9050 South), Sandy, UT 84094 Take I-15 to
the 9000 S. exit. As youre heading east and pass
through 700 East, 9000 South veers to the right
and youll be heading south. Turn left into the
residential and retail area at 9100 S. Take
another left on to Quarry Bend Drive and an
immediate right on to Quarry Sands Lane. Take
another immediate right on to Liberty Bend Lane
and the clubhouse is straight ahead. Please
remember a government issued photo ID is required
to tour an apartment. Contact Information Telepho
ne 801-727-1900 Fax [phone] Email
libertybend_at_cowboy.us
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Harwood Properties, Inc. 453 W. Three Mile
Road Sault Ste. Marie, MI 49783 Phone (906)
632-9047 Smoke-Free Properties Woodfield
Terrace Apts. Bingham Ave. Apts
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Tourville Apartments 910 Lincoln
Avenue Marquette, MI 49855 Phone (906)
288-9284 All properties are smoke-free.
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Smoke-Free Properties Cherry Creek Village,
Marquette Other buildings in Upper Peninsula and
Wisconsin
Lutheran Social Services of Wisconsin and Upper
Michigan, Inc. 647 West Virginia
Street Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53204 Telephone
414-281-4400 E-Mail info_at_lsswis.org
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Smoke-Free Properties Galesburg Village
Apartments Grandview Apartments Augusta Green
Apartments
Medallion Management 834 King Highway,Suite
100 Kalamazoo, MI 49001 Phone (269)
381-0350 Fax [phone]
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Smoke-Free Properties Pheasant Run
Apartments West Bridge Apartments Bayberry
Farms The Cottages at Bayberry Farms University
Meadows Riverwalk Meadows Summerview Trumbull
Crossing
KMG Prestige Main Office 102 South Main
Street Mount Pleasant, Michigan 48858 989
772-3261
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First Centrum 21400 Ridgetop Circle, Suite
250 Sterling, VA, 20166 Phone (703)
406-3471 Contact Rob Couch, President All
buildings smoke-free. Over 50 smoke-free
buildings in 7 states about 20 in Michigan.
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Heritage Senior Communities Heritage Property
Management 950 Taylor Avenue Grand Haven, MI
49417 Phone [phone] Fax [phone] Email
info_at_heritageseniorcommunities.com Smoke-Free
Properties Village at Appledorn, Holland Village
at Park Terrace, Muskegon
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Smoke-free community Country View Apartments
Town Homes 1928 East Britain Avenue Benton
Harbor, MI 49022 Telephone [phone]
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Preservation Management 707 Sable Oaks Drive S.
Portland, ME 04106 Office (207)
774-0501 Office [phone] Smoke-free MI
properties Warren Plaza, Detroit
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Flo-Mar Apartments 121 Perrin - Office Ypsilanti,
MI 48197 Phone [phone] All 30
properties smoke-free.
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Jewish Apartments Services 15000 W. Ten Mile
Road Oak Park, MI. 48237 Phone
248.592.1102 All properties smoke-free over 800
units.
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• To implement a smoke-free policy in a multi-unit
  dwelling where smoking residents already reside
• Establish a date on which all new residents must
  not smoke inside
• Decide how much time current resident smokers
  will have before their lease will include the
  smoke-free requirement, i.e., grandfathering

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• To implement a smoke-free policy in a multi-unit
  dwelling
• Add no smoking provisions to the leases for
  apartment complexes or to the house rules in
  public Housing Authority buildings

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• Private and public multi-unit owners uniformly
  report that enforcement is not an issue
• Residents consistently follow the rule  
• Violators of the smoke-free rule are most likely
  to be violators of other rules
• Eviction possible rarely, if ever, occurs

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Utah Secondhand Smoke Amendments
site www.tobaccofreeutah.org/sechndsmokeam.html
Utah Tobacco Prevention Control
site www.tobaccofreeutah.org/ets.html Utah
Smoke-Free Apt Condo Guide site www.tobaccofree
utah.org/aptcondoguide.html Utah Smoke-Free Apt
Condo Directory www.tobaccofreeutah.org/aptcondog
uide-dir.htm
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MISmokeFreeApartment web site www.mismokefreeapar
tment.org Smoke-Free Environments Law Project
site www.tcsg.org/sfelp/home.htm SFELP
Apartments site www.tcsg.org/sfelp/apartment.htm
SFELP Condominium site www.tcsg.org/sfelp/condos.
htm
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Your have resources online

• Tobacco Control Legal Consortium site
• http//tclconline.org
• Infiltration of Secondhand Smoke Into Apts
  Condos
• http//tclconline.org/documents/infiltration.pdf
• There Is No Constitutional Right to Smoke
• http//tclconline.org/documents/constitutional-rig
  ht.pdf
• The Americans with Disabilities Act Effective
  Legal
• Protection Against Secondhand Smoke Exposure
• http//tclconline.org/documents/Douglas.pdf

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Parkside Plan Apartment Features Amenities 100
Smoke Free
The demand for smoke-free environments is rising,
and Parkside is listening.
Parkside Commons will be a 100 smoke-free
environment, making it one of Massachusetts
premier smoke-free rental communities, inside
and out. Smoking is banned in all common areas,
on the grounds, and in the apartments
themselves. Why 100? Cigarette smoking is
hazardous to your health and its the number one
preventable cause of death. Second-hand smoke can
be just as deadly. Cigarette smoke and its very
noticeable odor travels farther than most of us
realize, permeating rooms and getting into walls,
ceilings, carpeting, drapes and clothing. At
Parkside, you have a right to fresh and pure air.
Parkside welcomes residents who care about
themselves. Our non-smoking policy is simply
another way to support our commitment to creating
a clean, healthy, active community for all.